Recently, the number of people interested in voluntarily registering on the blacklisted gambling register has been increasing. According to the Ministry of Finance (MoF), more than 200 people registered their requests in July alone.
The total number of such volunteers has already risen to 3,668. According to experts on addiction issues, these include those who feel gambling is out of their control or do not want to be tempted to spend money this way.
According to a study published on zodpovednehrani.cz, risky gambling affects 3% of the Czech population.
People registered in the registry cannot gamble in casinos or gambling halls, or the operator cannot allow them to enter the gaming area, set up, or use a user account. The ban also applies to fixed-odds betting and all gambling conducted over the internet. It does not apply to, for example, raffles at entertainment or scratchcards.
There are also alimony defaulters on the register
If people decide to enter the register voluntarily, they must do so on their own; their wife, for example, cannot do so. And if someone chooses to do so, they can apply for deletion in one year at the earliest.
According to him, there are currently more than 195,000 people on the register, which is fully operational as of December 2020. At the beginning of the year, there were 192,000. Most people on the record were there because of insolvency, bankruptcy, or because they received benefits in material distress.
The purpose is to ensure that money paid out in material hardship benefits does not end up in the machines. It also protects vulnerable groups from the negative consequences of pathological gambling. The registry does not apply to people in foreclosure.
Since July, the MoF has also entered those who do not pay child support into the register of persons excluded from gambling. Some 6,000 non-payers of child support are now on the record.
Their entry into the register is automatic ex officio, as is their eventual deletion. It is therefore impossible to delete a person based on a request from the defaulter. It is carried out by the MoF as soon as it becomes aware of the deletion from the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs register.
The gambling company faces a fine of up to 50 million
A gambling house or casino can be fined up to CZK 50 million for letting in a person, not on the register. If the operator allows such a person to set up or use a user account, a fine of up to CZK 3 million may be imposed. The Customs Administration carries out checks in gambling establishments.